Wringer



March 17, 1931. E, E,v ERlCKsON 1,796,446

WRINGER 1 Filed Deo. lo. 1928 Eli-l INVENTR Eu/nEE-PZCWJOW/ ATTOR EY5 Patented Mar. 17, 1931 EDWIN E. ERICKSON, OF HIGHLAND PARK, MICHIGAN WRINGER Application led December 10, 1928. Serial No. 324,827.

This invention relates to clothes wringers of the conventional roller type, the principal object being the provision of a simple and efficient mechanism for feeding the articles to be wrung to the wringer rollers.

Another object is to provide a wringer of the roller type with a pair of movable feed tables conveying the clothes to be wrung to the rollers, and clothes which have been wrung from the rollers, whereby to make it unnecessary for the person operating the same to place their hands in a position Where they may be caught in the rollers.

Another object is to provide a wringer of the roller type provided on each side of the rollers thereof with an endless table moving at a speed commensurate with the speed of the surface of the rollers, and so positioned as to feed articles to be wrung to the rollers,

and to carry away those which have been wrung away from the rollers.

A further object is to provide, in combination with a wringer having a non-shiftable wringer roller and a bodily movable wringer roller, an endless table on either side of the wringer each of which is provided with a driving roller, the bodily movable wringer roller being provided with a gear and each of the table driving rollers being provided with a gear normally meshing with the gear on the wringer roller whereby the tables are caused to move upon movement of the wringer rollers.

The above being among the objects of the present invention, the same consists in certain features of construction and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described with reference to the accompanying drawing andl then claimed, having the above and other objects in view.

In the accompanying drawing which illustrates a suitable embodiment of the present invention, and in which like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several different views,-

Fig. 1 is a more-or-less diagrammatic partially broken side view of a wringer mechanism embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary end view of the wringer shown in Fig. 1.

In a clothes wringer of the conventional roller type such as are usually found in homes', it is necessary in feeding the clothes to the wringer rollers to bring the fingers into contact with, or in closely adjacent position with respect to the rollers. This practice is very dangerous, particularly where such wringers are 'power driven, and it is not an unusual occurrence for the operators fingers to be drawn into the rollers with consequent injury to the fingers. Many wringers are equipped with a release mechanism for the rollers for taking care of such conditions, but inasmuch as no necessity arises to release the rollers until the fingers have already been drawn into them, such devices merely limit the eXtent of the injury, and do not eliminate the injury itself.

The present invention contemplates the provision of a construction whereby the necessity of bringing the fingers into proximity with the rollers of a wringer is eliminated, and therefore the liability of injury to fingers from being drawn into the rollers is greatly minimized, if not entirely eliminated.

The method I employ to accomplish this end is to provide a small movable table on each side of the rollers on which articles to be wrung` may be placed and thereafter be automatically carried to the rollers, and S0 which carry the articles wrung away from the rollers.

Referring to the accompanying drawing I show a wringer which, except for the modification necessitated by the present invention, may be of any conventional roller type. The particular construction shown includes a pair of vertically extending side bars 10 of channel shape connected together at the top by a cross bar 11. Rotatably mounted between the side bars 10 at a suitable distance below the cross bar 11 is a single roller 12 having a shaft 13 non-r0tatably secured thereto which extends through and has suitable bearing in the side bars 10. Immediately above the roller 12 and parallel thereto is a second wringer roller 14 having a shaft 15 non-rotatably secured thereto. The shaft 15 extends through the vertically extending slots 16 in the side bars 10 which slots permit the roller fi 14 to move vertically so as to enable the space between the rollers 12 and 14 to be varied to taire care of 'tl-e thiclir s the particular articles being operate... upon. ji pressure member 17 having; its ends vertically slidably e i ived in the channels ofthe side members l() is positioned immediately below the cross member 11 and bear. lower end against a spring member 13 wnos outer ends are vertically slidably received in the channels of the side membeu; 1l). and which hear against the vertically slidable cross member 19 whicn carries th bezuing` bl clis 2O at its ends. The bearing' blocks 2O are shown as contacting1 only with the upper surface of the shaft 15 on either sul f the roller 14, although it may be formed to completely encircle this sherrt if desired. Hand screws 21 threaded into the ends of tae upper eros. bar 11 bear against the ends of the member 1l' and act to control the pressure which may be exerted by the rollers anu 14 by acting through the spring.;` 13, member 19 and blocks 20. The shaft 15 on either side of the roller 14 is provided with ear 23 and the shaft 13 on either side of the roller 12 is provided with a gear 22 meshing; wi h the co responding` gear 23 so that rotation of one of the rollers 12 or 14 causes a like rotation of the other roller. Power to turn the rollers is supplied to the shaft 13 of the non-adjustable roller 12 and may be supplied either by a hand crank such as 24 or b y a power device such an electric motor having` a drive shaft 26. l prefer to include in the power line a friction clutch such as is indicated in Fig. 1 and which may include a driven member 27 fixed to the shaft 13 and provided with a conical recess such as 23, and having a cover 29 secured in place by screws such as 30, the shaft 26 beingl provided with an axially slidable cone member 31 normally held in engagement with the recess 2S by means of a coil spring such as 32.

In accordance with the present invention, each end of the wringer is provided with a transversely extendingplate-like frame or supporting' member 33 which is suitably connected to the corresponding side member 10. Extending' between the plate member 33 on either side of the roller 12 and positioned in horizontally spaced relationship with respect to the roller 12 is a roller 34 having;` a shaft 35 projecting past the ends thereof and suitably liournalled in the plates 33. These rollers 34 are lneferably positioned so that their upper surfaces are substantially on the same level the upper surfaces of the roller 12, or slightly below it. Outwardly and downwardly of each of the rollers is another roller 36 extending between the plate members and each provided with a shaft 37. In this case the shafts 37 project through the plate members 33 but are received in slotted openings 38 in the plate members 33 so as to be adjusable towards and away from the side bars 10. Such adjustment may be taken care of by providing the bearings 39 for the shafts 37, each of which bearings may be slidably received in its corresponding slot 38 with a stud such as 40 which passes through a suitable ear 41 carried by the plate members 33 and which studs are provided with suitable wing nuts 42 for controlling the position of the bearing members 3 Carried by each pair of rollers 34 and 36 is an endless belt 43 of substantially the same width as the rollers 12 and 14. This belt 43 which serves as an endless table, as will. hereinafter be explained, may be made of any suitable material of sulicient flexibility, such as heavy duck, a rubber composition, or the like, and its tension is maintained by shifting` the corresponding` roller 36 in the manner previously described. These tables are driven in the following manner:

The shaft 15 for the roller 14 has secured thereto outside of one of the side bars 10, and preferably on that side of the wringer opposite to the side where the power is applied., a

gear 44, and secured to each of the shafts 35 on the same side of the wringer and in line with the gear 44, 1s another gear 45. The gears 44 and which interrnesh are preferably provided with teeth of relatively great length so that simultaneous movement of all the pears is insured over a relatively wide variation of the space between the rollers 12 and 14.

lt will thus be apparent that when the a power is applied to turn the roller 12 the gears 22 and 23 cause an equal rotation of the roller 14, and upon rotation of the roller 14 the rollers 34 and consequently the tables 43 are caused to be driven through the gears 44 and 45. Inasmuch as the roller 14 turns in the opposite direction of rotation to the roller 12, and the rollers 34 turn in vthe oppow site direction of rotation to the roller 14, the rollers 34 turn in the same direction of rotation as the rollers 12 regardless ,of the direction of rotation of the roller 12. Thus the upper surface of the tables 43 travel in the same direction the adjacent surfaces of the rollers 12 and 14at all times. 1n order to insure the surface `of ,the tables 43 travelling at the same speed as the .surfaces 1et the rollers 12 and 14 the diameters of the rollers 34 and the ratio of the and 45 must of course be suitably proportioned. 1n the case shown, this has been taken care of by making the roller 34 of the same diameter as the roller 12 and making the gears 44 and 45 of equal diameters.

1t will be noted that the rollers 34 and the corresponding surface of the table or belts 43 are positioned in spaced but adjacent relationship with respect to the roller 12. It is desirable that this spaced relationship be maintained in order 4that there .will'be` no posiis sibility of the water squeezed out by the rollers l2 and 14 from being carried to the opposite side. A shiftable drain board such as 46 having a pair of cooperating latches 47 to lock it in either of its shiftable positions may be provided below the wringer rollers for directing the water squeezed out of the articles being wrung to either side of the center of the machine, as may be required, depending upon the direction of rotation.

It will also be noted thatinthis construction the underside of the tables or belts 43 have a material inclination downwardly and outwardly from the wringer rollers. This causes any water collecting on the table on which the wet clothes are fed to run down to the outer roller and drop off into the tub usually employed below it, thereby aiding` in preventing such water from dripping onto the floor under the wringer.

F rom the above it will be apparent that when the wringer is in motion clothes to be wrung may be placed on the table 43 which is moving towards the wringer rollers, and that such table will deliver the articles to be wrung to between the rollers l2 and 14 without necessitating the operator placing his or her fingers in proximity to the wringer rollers, and that the articles passing through the rollers l2 and 14 will be carried by the opposite table 43 away from the rollers, where they may be removed, or deposited in a suitable receptacle.

Formal changes may be made in the speciic embodiment of the invention described without departing from the spirit or substance of the broad invention, the scope of which is commensurate with the appended claims.

What I claim is:

l. In a wringer, in combination, a pair of wringer rollers one of which is bodily shiftable, gears connecting said rollers for simultaneous rotation, a third roller rotatably supported in the same general plane as the non-shiftable roller and in adjacent but spaced relationship with respect to it, a fourth roller positioned outwardly of said third roller, an endless table supported by said third and fourth rollers, and gears on said third roller and on said bodily shiftable roller engageable to cause simultaneous movement of said table and bodily shiftable roller, the last mentioned gears having rela- A tively long teeth whereby engagement of said gears is maintained over a relatively wide range of shiftable positions of said shiftable roller.

2. In a wringer, in combination, a vertically shiftable wringer roller, a non-shiftable wringer roller cooperating therewith, gears connecting said rollers for simultaneous rotation, a third roller positioned in general horizontal alignment with said non-shiftable roller and in adjacent but spaced relationship with respect thereto, a fourth roller positioned outwardly of said third roller, an endless belt movable over said third and fourth rollers, a gear secured to said shiftable roller, and a gear secured to said third roller in mesh with said gear on said shiftable roller whereby to cause movement of the upper surface of said belt towards said wringer rollers in the direction of movement of the upper surface of said non-shiftable wringer roller, the lower surface of said fourth roller being positioned a substantial distance below the lower surface of said third roller whereby to induce water to drain towards said fourth roller.

3. In a wringer, in combination, a shiftable wringer roller, a non-shiftable wringer roller cooperable therewith, an endless table on each side of said rollers, each of said tables including a driving roller, a gear on each of said driving rollers, and a gear on said shiftable wringer roller engaging said gears whereby to drive the upper surface of both of said tables in the same direction and simultaneously with the upper surface of said nonshiftable wringer roller. y

4. In a wringer, in combination, a pair of vertically extending horizontally spaced side frames, a pair of wringer rollers extending between said side frames and operatively mounted therein in superposed position, one of said rollers being fixed against bodily vertical movement and the other thereof being bodily shiftable vertically towards and from said fixed roller, gears connecting said rollers for simultaneous movement, a pair of oppositely, outwardly and downwardly extending frame members rigidly secured to each of said -side frame members, a belt roller rotatably mounted on each side of said fixed roller between the corresponding ends of said outwardly extending frame members and in spaced and parallel relation with respect to said fixed roller, another belt roller rotatably mounted on each side of said fixed roller between the outer ends of said corresponding outwardly extending frame members, a continuous belt supported by and between each pair of said belt rollers on each side of said fixed roller, a gear on each of the first mentioned belt rollers, and a gear on said shiftable roller in mesh with said gears on said belt rollers whereby said belt is driven simultaneously with said wringer rollers and with its upper surface moving in the same direction of movement as that surface of said fixed roller immediately adjacent said shiftable roller, the teeth of the last mentioned gears being relatively long whereby to insure engagement of said last mentioned gears over a relatively wide range of shifting of said shiftable roller.

EDWIN E. ERICKSON. 

